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60 Fenwick Hall Allee Unit# 721

Johns Island, SC  29455  (843) 817-2651

 

 TRUE Shelter Accessibility

In keeping with Portlight's mission, which includes providing for the needs of people with disabilities, especially in times of catastrophe and through the generosity of our sponsors, The Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation and Wunderground.com, we are proud to announce the TRUE Shelter Accessibility program! TRUE stands for Training, Response, Understanding and Empowerment. As it unfolds and grows, our TRUE program will help emergency management departments to provide better accessibility and services in temporary disaster shelters. It is our hope that we can become a touchstone not just for those we serve, but for those who provide disaster relief to their communities.

We are currently distributing our TRUE Shelter Accessibility guidelines to emergency management departments nationwide. We've established a toll-free number and dedicated email address for help requests not just from these agencies but from those who encounter accessibility issues in rescue and shelter situations. We are prepared to quickly respond to needs for durable medical equipment, accessibility aids, medical supplies and short-term financial assistance. Portlight's dedicated volunteer network is also at the ready for clearing of debris, as well as minor repairs to and restoration of accessibility aids such as ramps and railings, and distribution of food, water, formula, diapers and other necessary items.

To see more information on the program, click here.

 Reeve Foundation Grant announced for Portlight Strategies

For Immediate Release Media Contact: January 31, 2012 Janelle LoBello(973) 379-2690 ext. 7111 media@christopherreeve.org

Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation Awards 76 Nonprofit Organizations Quality of Life Grants

Short Hills, N.J. - (February 1, 2012) The Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation announced it is has awarded 76 Quality of Life Grants totaling $450,000 to nonprofit organizations throughout the United States. Awarded twice annually, the Quality of Life Grants Program rewards nonprofit organizations who reflect the Reeve Foundation's mission to empower individuals living with paralysis. Since the Quality of Life Grants Program's inception, almost 2,000 grants totaling over $15.2 million have been awarded.

Portlight Strategies of Johns Island, South Carolina was honored with a $25,000 grant which will help to support the replenishment of a mobile emergency disaster relief storage trailer that transports and provides accessible shelter, essential medical supplies and durable medical equipment to individuals living with paralysis and their families in the event of weather catastrophe. Funded with a previous Quality of Life grant to Portlight Strategies, the trailer has helped families up and down the East Coast of the United States after hurricanes and flooding and in Texas after wildfires. Portlight will also work to educate emergency shelter providers to make them more accessible to people with mobility impairments.

Shriners Hospital for Children in Chicago, Illinois, was awarded a $17,000 grant to support a project using the SmartWheel system to help prevent and eliminate pain and repetitive strain injury during prolonged use of wheelchairs in pediatric patients living with spinal cord injuries.

Of the many adaptive sports grants awarded, Disabled Sports USA located in Rockville, Maryland, received a $4,500 grant to help support the Hartford Ski Spectacular. Over 700 youth and adults will have the opportunity to enjoy a diverse amount of snow sports made accessible by adaptive equipment, trained adaptive instructors, skilled professionals, and volunteers at one of the nation's largest winter sports festivals for people living with disabilities.

PAALS, of Columbia, South Carolina, has been awarded a $2,500 grant to support an experiential program for members of the military and veterans with combat-related anxiety to train service dog partners for military and veteran clients living with paralysis.

"The Quality of Life Grants Program allows us to connect with other nonprofit organizations to enable individuals living with paralysis and their families to enhance their daily livelihood," said Peter T. Wilderotter, president and CEO of the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation. "Promoting as much freedom and independence as possible for individuals living with paralysis is a tenet of our mission. The Quality of Life Grants do just that."

The Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation Quality of Life grants program was conceived by the late Dana Reeve to address the myriad needs of children and adults with paralysis and other mobility impairments and their families. Grants support critical life-enhancing and life-changing initiatives that improve physical and emotional health and increase independence. Funded projects offer a diversity of services and approaches: improving access; providing education and job training; sponsoring organized sporting activities; and much more. Quality of Life grants are funded through a cooperative agreement with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Award #1U59DD000838).

About the Reeve Foundation The Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation is dedicated to curing spinal cord injury by funding innovative research, and improving the quality of life for people living with paralysis through grants, information and advocacy. For more information, and to review the entire list of Quality of Life grant recipients, please visit our website at www.ChristopherReeve.org or call 800-225-0292.


Portlight Strategies, Inc., is a 501c3 tax exempt nonprofit organization dedicated to meeting the specific needs of un-served underserved and forgotten people.

Portlight Strategies, Inc.
60 Fenwick Hall Allee Unit# 721
Johns Island SC 29455